Ray Woods, a Massive Step Forward and Kev Bach - Again!

The legendary Ray Woods. 

After what seems like a particularly long pre-season preparation period we’re just days away from the new season and, just like everyone else connected with Caernarfon Town Football Club, I’m very excited at what lies ahead. 

I must say that, as much as I’ve enjoyed all the pre-season friendlies over the past five weeks, they’re no substitute for the real thing and I’ve been counting the days to the big kick off ever since the league cup final in May. I’ve attempted, in the last two blogs, to describe what’s been going on, in and around the club, since then and I hope that the club’s various press releases and social media updates have been a help in keeping everyone relatively up to speed with everything. All that’s remains for me to do now then is to quickly cover the last two friendlies and mention a few things that have happened and may be of interest since the last blog.

The defeat to The New Saints at the end of last month was followed with a run-out for the reserves  against a decent Llanrwst outfit. It was an excellent performance by the youngsters and I was particularly impressed by their attitude in the second half, when they found a way to win after losing  their two goal lead. Iwan had decided to include one or two senior players in the starting line-up to help the youngsters settle and they did this in great style, scoring twice without reply in a very good first half. The manager brought the senior players off at half-time and Llanrwst got back on level 

Corrig scores his second against Llanrwst. 

terms by enforcing a more robust approach but, just when it looked as if the Roosters would go on to win, Town’s youngsters showed their mettle and fully deserved their late winner by Herbie Hofstede. Everyone had played well but Corrig McGonigle stood out for me, finding the net twice and setting up the winner. He has been very impressive so far and seems to be a real goalscorer, and who doesn’t love one of those in the side?

GAP Connahs Quay had been scheduled to visit the Oval for our final warm-up match on Saturday but, due to being stuck in traffic on the A55, they could not make it to the ground so the match was called off. There was no blame at all on Connah’s Quay but it was such a disappointment  to call it off less than two hours before kick-off although, thanks to social media, I think we managed to get the message out to most of the club’s supporters. 

Ray Woods near the spot he struck from a free-kick for the Cofis. 

Despite the disappointment, however, on a personal level I still had an enjoyable time at the ground as I got to meet one of the club’s greatest ever players, Ray Woods. Those who are old enough to remember John King’s brilliant team of the mid-eighties that propelled the Canaries onto the back pages of all the main national papers and onto our television screens will know how good Ray was. He was undoubtedly one of the team’s brightest stars, causing havoc as he ran at defences on the right wing and I can well remember seeing him taking on, and dribbling past left backs at will. He was so good, in fact, that he went on to play for Coventry City in the then equivalent of the Premier League, becoming manager Terry Butcher’s first managerial signing, the former Ipswich star paying Wigan £200,000 for Ray’s services. The last time I saw Ray was when he lined up for the Sky Blues against Liverpool at Anfield in the early 1990’s, he had an excellent game on the right flank and was just as good as I remembered him from his Oval days. Unfortunately, a troublesome groin injury led to repair damage to his stomach and a change of manager resulted in Ray’s time in the top flight coming to a premature end as he returned to Wigan after three years at Highfield Road.   

Now fifty one, Ray had hoped to catch his old side in action on Saturday but things didn’t quite work out that way. However, he still spent a good hour at the ground and it was great to meet someone who I’ve held in such high esteem for the past thirty years. Having just married two weeks ago, it was also really nice to meet his wife Faye and they have promised to visit again in the not too distant future. Before they left the Oval, Ray walked onto the pitch and we discussed his time with the club. It was brilliant to hear him talking so fondly of the club, and the team he played in and he shared a few great anecdotes, whilst also mentioning a goal he scored for the Cofis all those years ago from a free kick at the Hendre End. I was also pleased to hear him say that the ground looks wonderful these days and how pleased he was that it had been developed so much. Of course, it was a golden opportunity for me to take a photo with one of my heroes as a teenager and I didn’t pass it up! Before leaving, Ray also posed with this season’s new shirt and was rather impressed with it! (see top of blog entry).

Town's new keeper, Mike Jones. 

The following day I received a message from him to say how much he’d enjoyed the visit to his old ground and that it had felt very much like going back home. A really nice thing to say and, if at all possible, I will hope to carry out an interview with him for the blog in the not too distant future. Ray Woods, what a player he was!  

Before moving on from those halcyon days of the eighties, I’m pleased to say that I’ve recently been in touch with another member of that legendary team, Phil Wilson, and Phil very kindly agreed to an interview with me which I hope to publish in the next week or two. Just like Ray, Phil is a real gent too, and has plenty of interesting to say about his time with us and his long career as a player and manager.
Back to the present team now, and this week’s match with Nantlle Vale. The Canaries were much too strong for Vale, and whilst I didn’t learn anything new about the side I’m sure it helped both teams to reach the fitness levels they’ll require for the season. Following Saturday’s cancellation it was important that the players had a final run out before the real action begins and so it served a purpose. Just as importantly it also gave our new goalkeeper, Mike Jones, an opportunity to play behind the defence for the first time, which can only be a good thing. Incidentally, I had a quick chat  with Mike on Saturday and he is really excited at joining Caernarfon and seemed quietly confident we can do well this season. He has a great attitude and I’m sure will be a success at the club.

Iwan and Jay with Margaret Jones of Gofal Bro Cyf.

It’s also been a nice surprise to see that Kevin Roberts has returned to the fold, having originally decided to return from the game during the summer. I was disappointed to see him go last month so am really pleased that he’s back with us. I’m sure I’m not the only one who will be looking forward to seeing a few more of his bone-crunching tackles over the course of the campaign! 

Away from the pitch, there’s been a very exciting development at the club with the announcement that Gofal Bro Cyf have become our new main sponsor. As was stated in the official press release, the sponsorship deal is the biggest in the club’s history and in my opinion it’s a massive step forward for us if we are going to compete with the top clubs in the country. It was nice to meet the company’s proprietor, Margaret Jones, and her staff at the ground on Saturday and it’s good to know that we’re being backed by such a reputable company and, just as importantly, by such nice people. Let’s hope we can give them plenty of coverage during a successful campaign! 

Gareth Edwards in the new training kit.

We only had one home and one away shirt on the day and so I was limited as to the photos I could take so Jay Gibbs thankfully  agreed to pose for a few shots in addition to the usual ‘sponsors photo’. I don’t think Jay was too comfortable at taking the photos but he stuck it out, and did a great job. I would have hated to play against him (not that I was ever good enough to have done!) because he is such a competitive character, but off the field he is a gentleman and always very helpful, and I was very grateful that he helped me out on Saturday. Thanks Jay!

The new kits will be available to buy soon but, for now, if any of you fancy getting yourself the new training gear the players are using, here’s the link to where you can order them directly:

http://www.totalteamwearuk.com/clientshops/caernarfontownfcacademy/default.htm

This time last year I wrote a blog entry titled ‘This Can Be Our Year’ where I stated that the 2015/16 season could a very successful one for Caernarfon Town. If truth be told, whilst quietly confident about our prospects there was also an element of the unknown as we had a new manager and a few new players in the squad. This year, however, I know exactly what kind of manager Iwan is and the calibre of players we have at the club and, whilst I’m well aware that other teams will have strengthened during the summer, I am confident that the 2016/17 season will be a very exciting one for the Cofis and that we have a good opportunity to return to the Welsh Premier League at the end of the new campaign.

It’s going to be a long season, but everyone at the club is ready for it!

Come on Town!!